At first glance Hinduism, to the western eye, appears incomprehensible. Almost ridiculous. Then you start examining it through the unbiased lens of your own religious heritage and the perspective changes. I was never much of a Christian, but I know the basics. God had a son who he sacrificed on the cross for the redemption of our sins. Giant milk chocolate egg laying rabbits and flying, whiskey-nosed reindeer are the most recognizable symbols of the two holiest days in the Christian calendar. As a protestant, my eyes widened when my catholic friends started on about a ghost of some sort being an equal part of the seemingly straight forward narrative. This is just the tip of the ice berg. Who hasn't read the Da Vinci Code right?
I thought I was getting the hang of buddhism when I left Vietnam but it all pales in complexity and bewilderment to Hinduism. I hope I don't offend any of my Hindu friends by the simplistic understanding I have settled for. It's not pretty but it's the best that I can do. As far as I can tell, it's a monotheistic religion. This being said, God can be accessed through up to 32 million (yes million) sub gods or "avatars" depending upon one's beliefs and traditions. The religion has been described as liquid, taking the form of any container you put it in. I recently read an article using concepts of computer science to compare Christianity (or Islam) to Hinduism. The former are like closed code systems. You have no access to the source code and thus no opportunity to customize the program to your own needs or values. Hinduism is like an open code system. You can mess with the code all you like and not piss off the original programmers. That's kind of cool. Throw in karma, reincarnation, the Kama Sutra, veggie samosas and spicy lime pickle and you've got yourself one hell of an awesome faith (sorry, no hell). You don't even need to fill out a form or get washed in pig's blood to become a member.
We arrived in Varanasi, Hinduism's holiest city, at 3:00 am after a 15 hour train journey from Calcutta. Seeing India from the train made me regret that nearly all of our time here will be spent in massive, pulsating cities. There seems to be some compelling countryside out there to explore. A future trip I guess.
Hindus come to Varanasi to die. lots of them. It is believed that if your ashes or body are placed into the holy Ganges River, which bends through Varanasi, the cycle of reincarnation will be broken and the soul will ascend to heaven. Mira and I decided to take a quick stroll down to the river while Deb and Shannon were getting ready on the morning after our arrival. We ran right into it. The river bank is lined with broad platforms and steep stairs leading down to the water. They are called "ghats" and most of them predate recorded history. Some ghats are designated for bathing and the washing of clothes, others for worship and still others for cremation. It was only 10 degrees this morning so we were surprised to see hundreds of people, young, old, male, female, standing in the river in their underwear washing and swimming. Most people do it every day. Others travel days to do it once in a lifetime. The waters, despite being amongst the most polluted on earth, are seen as supremely holy. To bathe in them is as fundamental to Hindus as communion (eating the flesh and blood of our Lord) is to Christians. It was fascinating to watch.
A few ghats further down we were nearly run over by a funeral procession carrying a body on a bamboo stretcher. The body was wrapped in white cloth and covered in beautiful, bright flowers. Four family members carried it down to the river and laid it in the waters of the Ganges with the feet facing south (the direction of the dead). We then watched as they uncovered the face and each family member took turns pouring water from the river into the deceased's mouth. While this was taking place, a group of five or six lower cast men (outcasts) prepared a wooden platform about three feet high on the riverbank. It is the sole job of the outcasts to tend to the funeral pyres until the bodies are reduced to ash. Any jewelry that was on the bodies during the cremation is theirs to keep as payment. After the body was laid on the platform, a small fire was lit in the deceased's mouth before his face was covered for the last time. Some final logs were put on the corpse and the whole mass set afire. It was unnerving to watch the body slowly catch fire - the flames first burning away the cloth to expose the head and feet which seemed to catch fire last. There were at least five other cremations taking place at this ghat. It and another larger one down river run 24/7/365. The flames at these two burning ghats have literally been burning without interruption for thousands of years. Jesus could have roasted a marshmallow on them if he'd attended a scout jamboree here as a boy.
As the wind changed in our direction, a sickly sweet smell made its way into our mouths and noses. It was the smell of burning flesh. I shall never forget it. Every thirty seconds or so I checked in with Mira to make sure she was ok. She was quietly transfixed by the whole ritual. The four of us witnessed it time and time again that day as we explored the shoreline and alleyways of Varanasi. Oddly enough it was neither creepy or disturbing. Watching the families gather to witness their loved ones depart their physical human existence and ascend to heaven was actually quite spiritual. Far better, in my view, than planting them in the ground sure in the knowledge that they will spend an unknown time in purgatory before someone presses the up or down button on the great elevator of the Christian afterlife.
Those for whom cremation is not permitted (the very poor, pregnant women, children, victims of suicide or snakebite, etc) are simply set afloat in the river upon death. To help reduce the number of bodies and body parts floating downstream, a variation of turtle has been bred that will feast on human flesh, but only the dead kind (remember the bathing ghats only a few feet up and downstream from the burning ghats). I'm not making this up. Google it! These turtles eat about a pound of flesh a day and are, as you can imagine, quite big. Needless to say, I'll not be sampling seafood of any kind while in Varanasi. In fact, Deb and I have given serious consideration to the merits of vegetarianism since arriving in India. We haven't had meat in a week and have enjoyed delicious meals notwithstanding.
At sunset we walked up to the major worship ghat and lit three small candles in lotus flower baskets and set them afloat on the Ganges. As we watched them float away into the calm night, we all had a loving thought for MS, Kay and Nalini and their entire family. The full moon was glistening off the river as the arti - the same prayer ceremony that has been performed at this place every night for 350 years, rang on in the background. At that moment there was no pollution, touts or traffic. Just a deep and peaceful respect for the oldest religion known to mankind and its deep symbolism and spirituality.
Cows are sacred to Hindus and they are ubiquitous here. Trying to avoid stepping in fresh piles of cow dung takes great concentration and agility - neither of which are abundant in most seven year olds, least of all one whose energy puts Ricochet Rabbit to shame. You can imagine the result! Cows are like pets here. Two thousand pound pets with owners who don't pick up after them! Rest assured, If you visit Varanasi, you will get poop of some sort on you. For the most part the beasts are docile which is good because they hang out in every street and alleyway. We got one scare when it seemed as though a big bull was running right at us. For an instant my flight instincts kicked in and I made a split second, every man for himself bolt for safety. Then I remembered, with no small measure of shame, that I was a husband and a father as well as a coward and turned my attention back to making sure Deb and the kids were safe too. As it turns out he was chasing another bull, not us, but it was a good gut check all the same.
There are no motor vehicles along the waterfront so other than the burning bodies and free range bovines it is relatively peaceful. The touts, however, are relentless, trying to sell you this or that or take you on a boat ride. If you don't make eye contact and learn a few choice hindi words, they'll usually leave you alone after 5 or 10 metres. The moment one approaches Shannon has taken to waving her hand at them in disgust and muttering "chalo, chalo" (go! go!). So much for the whole empathy for those less fortunate goal.
As soon as you venture a few blocks back from the river the old mayhem shows itself. We took a tuk tuk to a cute little silk shop today and picked up some scarves, saris and p.j.s. That will pretty much sum up our shopping in India. Tomorrow we will catch a flight to Agra to see the Taj Mahal and then the train to Jaipur in Rajasthan to re-rendezvous with David, Amy and the kids before heading up to Delhi. I don't for one instant regret coming to this simply amazing place. Once you get past the things that seem filthy and unholy to us, it becomes clear what a sublimely spiritual place this is. I'm not sure I will ever return, but I'll never forget what I saw and learned here.
In Delhi we celebrate my birthday which is also the mid-point of our year on the road. I know it will seem like a flash in the pan when it's all said and done, but right now the pace seems fine. We haven't unpacked our suitcases in months, but are thoroughly accustomed to this nomadic lifestyle. I suspect that when we approach our final weeks and can smell the barn, we will be aching to get home. Until then, we'll just keep moving on. Still no takers for South Africa yet, but I seem to recall that Catherine and Ruby Pigott are traveling that neck of the woods around then. If anyone is in touch with them, let them know we'd love to touch base. On a similar note, the Pontin/Harris' emailed us today to let us know that they found the geocache we left for them at the base of Mount Cook in New Zealand a few months back. It's a small world after all.
Namaste from Varanasi.